Legislative Session number- 88

Bill Name: SF1234

3E Relating to workers' compensation

ARTICLE 1 - WORKERS' COMPENSATION
DEPARTMENT PROPOSALS

Modifying certain workers compensation provisions
relating to determinations of coverage, rehabilitation consultants and vendors
disciplinary actions, and scope of administrative conferences actions for
certain medical treatment, special compensation fund reimbursements, access to
certain medical data, receipts for payment of compensation audits, and claim
settlement procedure

ARTICLE 2 - WORKERS' COMPENSATION ADVISORY COUNCIL
RECOMMENDATIONS

Expanding the definition of occupational disease and personal
injury to include mental impairment; defining mental impairment; specifying
compensable injury conditions; modifying legal services fees limitation;
specifying legal disbursements additional award applicability; modifying
temporary total disability; defining job placement to include job development
and specifying a limit; regulating registered rehabilitation consultant case
management services; requiring timely administrative conferences on
rehabilitation issues; limiting employer liability prevailing charges; modifying
benefit adjustment; requiring the commissioner of labor and industry to
development rules establishing standards and procedures for criteria for
long-term opioid and scheduled pain medication use; requiring the commissioner
to implement a temporary patient advocate program for certain employees with
back injuries; requiring the commissioner of labor and industry to study the
effectiveness and costs of potential reforms and barriers within the workers'
compensation carrier and health care provider reimbursement system
(je)